A Maryland officer was suspended after a bystander recorded video of him embracing a woman and entering the back seat of his patrol vehicle with her at a public park, officials announced Tuesday.
Video caught the uniformed Prince George County officer entering his cruiser with the woman at Southlawn Park in the Washington, D.C., suburb of Oxon Hill on Monday.
Nelson Ochoa, who recorded the video, told NBC Washington that the officer and the woman were in the backseat for roughly 30 to 40 minutes before going their separate ways.
“We couldn’t believe what we were seeing, and what really made us go, wow, this is crazy, is when the car started rocking a little bit to the left and right,” Ochoa said. “That’s when we were, like, this is crazy. In broad daylight with kids around.”
The Prince George County Police Department said Tuesday that it was aware of the video, the officer was identified and he was suspended pending an investigation.
NBC Washington identified the officer as Francesco Marlett, who was previously accused of abusing a former girlfriend’s child in a 2016 case. Charges were dropped against him, according to the station.
A representative for the police department confirmed Marlett’s identity to NBC News on Wednesday and that he is the same officer involved in the 2016 case.
A voicemail left for Marlett was not immediately returned. NBC News has reached out to the Fraternal Order of Police representing the Prince George County Police for comment on the matter.
